The subject invention relates to an apparatus for applying a coating material to textured or unevenly surfaced sheet-like materials, and more particularly, to a paint applicator for direct roll coating of textured panel members such as exterior siding or interior plywood panels having a contoured surface. These panels are generally composed of wood or synthetic material which is intended to simulate a wooden appearance and typically include striations or a plurality of grooves for providing the desired aesthetic effect. In practice, it is desirable that these panels have different colors for matching different home decors, and so the panels must be painted or dye coated. It will be appreciated that the painting or dye coating process must be a continuous one for economical reasons and that the method of applying the coating must be such that all the crevices in the striations and grooves are thoroughly covered.
There are several techniques now being used for coating textured or unevenly surfaced wood panels. For example, in one technique the surface of the panel is coated with a knife coater. The panel is then brushed or subjected to an air blast to remove excess paint. This technique has been found to be inefficient, however, because of the loss of paint during the process. Another technique currently used is spray coating the surface of the panel. It will be appreciated that such a process is also inefficient and that there is a substantial loss of paint. There is also a problem with air pollution. A further technique used for coating the panels is coating the panel with a rubber or paint type roller. However, with this technique there is poor control of the paint film and inconsistency of results with some of the striations or grooves in the panel being left uncoated. This has been found to be especially true after a period of use when the paint dries on the outer surface of the roller, thus rendering the roller inflexible and unable to penetrate the striations and grooves of the panel.
Accordingly, it is an object of the subject invention to provide a paint applicator for direct roll coating of textured panel members which allows for the uniform application of the paint film.
It is another object of the subject invention to provide a paint applicator for coating textured panel members which is efficient and in which the paint applied is controlled so as to minimize loss of paint and air pollution.
It is a further object of the subject invention to provide an applicator for roll coating textured panel members as described above which is simple in construction and relatively inexpensive to manufacture.